USA Jet for Sale

[landlover]

pilotyip aji is hiring, you can come and swing my gear!

 

[pilotyip]

Nope this is my last job

pilotyip aji is hiring, you can come and swing my gear!

Retirement is the next step for me, fly the "Warbirds" on the air show circuit, flight instruct, and maybe some consulting on the side. However if you want me to swing gear next year, I would love to for $500/day plus expenses. About the same as I would have made as a DA-20 Captain at USA Jet for working an extra day.

 

[pilotyip]

If Porky is right

Yep, thats right folks. USA JET the once mighty cargo company is selling not only the parked aircraft but also the currently flying aircraft. CH wants out of the cargo biz and has talked the investors into it. Current aircraft for sale include:

1. All the Falcon 20's
2. All the parked DC-9s
3. N327US and N196US
4. The Main Hangar is also up for sale/lease

It looks like we have until the end of the year before the doors close so update your resume and make plenty of copies.

If Porky is right everyone might be unemployed by Christmas. So if you believe in Porky you better take the next job that comes along. If Porky is wrong you could be making a bad move, but who would make a career move on a guy who hides behind the name of a pig? BTW pilotyip is Randy Hotton in case you do not know.

 

[TWA]

you can come and swing my gear!

Whatever floats your boat man. uke:

 

[100-1/2]

I have done some work for Active Aero over the years.

They used to pay just over 30 days and weren't my favorite customer. Last year this stretched to 45 days to pay and I would only use them for empty repositioning. Recently, seemingly commensurate with the DA20 layoffs, this stretched to OVER 60 days payment for services rendered and I totally discontinued pursuit of their business because of the way they handled DA20 drivers.

I guess my main competitors in C300/400 running bottom of the barrel pricing for volume quit flying as much for AA as I now get more flying and at higher pricing than I could have previously.

Either Royal is too strapped to recoup 60 days payment from AA against their smaller margins or they, like a vulture are awaiting the final proverbial nail to swoop in January09 to take over AA's clients without the the overhead from buying AA outright. Curious.

What is the best DA20 they have? Any idea on AFTT, Engine Conditions, Avionics and other details, I should have to take to the bank? Are they even worthy of consideration?

100-1/2

 

[LR25]

what would they have diverified into?, besides pax ops and gov't contracting?

Those should have been the questions asked a few years ago. Like alot of people, I believe they could have gone alot farther with some of the talent that USAJ possesed, but know one seemed to pull the trigger, or really even cared to.

There were plenty of guys on hand that "if" they were to try the wide body market for instance, they probobly would have flourished, even in todays environment. But they would rather try to fill a DA-20 with a few bumpers.

Its really too bad, because there are alot of hard working people that would have taken the challenge, and probobly would of had great success.

 

[Gearmonkey]

What is the best DA20 they have? Any idea on AFTT, Engine Conditions, Avionics and other details, I should have to take to the bank? Are they even worthy of consideration?

100-1/2

I've heard they aren't really worth it. A mechanic I talked to today even said he thought that Grande Air's Falcons were in better shape. Yikes!

 

[aerobat]

Funny we just hired a Director of Outstations, Jay W. to set up airport handling for heavy pax flying for one of our contracts.

"Funny"... I'm sure W2B is just rollicking in laughter at the humor in that... He's outta work, yet another "Director" level salary is brought in..?? Ha ha, I get it now...

 

[McNugget]

I bid $20

Tight-wad! I bid $30!

 

[WabiSabi]

I've heard they aren't really worth it. A mechanic I talked to today even said he thought that Grande Air's Falcons were in better shape. Yikes!

Is that Grand Aire's Mexican sister company?

 

[Gearmonkey]

Gax

Is that Grand Aire's Mexican sister company?

Yes, I guess it is.

 

[pilotyip]

Out of touch

I've heard they aren't really worth it. A mechanic I talked to today even said he thought that Grande Air's Falcons were in better shape. Yikes!

I don't know where you got your info, but it is not correct. I don't have the details, but they had a high dispatch rate, very few DMI's, RVSM, working autopilots, one has a fresh C check. Engines mid time. Our pilots had no hesitation on writing up gripes as they found them. Maintenance worked them off under a Part 121 program. The Feds on a regular basis inspected our maintenance, since we are right next door to the FSDO. We had nothing to hide from anyone. They are good reliable collection of DA-20's. I would fly anyone of them any day, anywhere. They were great flying airplanes. I miss them dearly and I miss the checking I did and watching our pilots excel in their operation of these fantastic birds.

 

[Way2Broke]

I too would take a USA Jet Falcon anywhere, anytime, with my closest family members in them. To say that USA Jet's MX on the Falcon was below industry standard is a huge discredit to those that signed for them.

 

[172Capt]

No hesitation from me either. Well maintained and were fixed when written up if it was plausible. Some stuff may be dmi'ed until more convienent, do you really need 3 radios? Hell the regionals out there probably fly around with more problems than those falcons did. They are old, things will break, but when they did break you were never pressured to fly, and you could expect a mechanic there within 24 hours to fix the thing.

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

OOOooooh.... so THIS is the crash.

CE

 

[ABUSED PILOT]

In reference to usajet for sale every company is for sale for the right price. Usajet in no way shape or form is going under. They might be hiring in the next two months. They have a few passenger contracts that should be starting soon. To every one who wants to solve usajet's problems please post the problem with a SOLUTION so you can educate management.

 

[172Capt]

so are they going to call back 27 pilots then hire?

 

[pilotyip]

26?

so are they going to call back 27 pilots then hire?

You mean 26, there were 28 let go, 2 are over 65, that leaves 26, where did you get 27?

 

[172Capt]

You mean 26, there were 28 let go, 2 are over 65, that leaves 26, where did you get 27?

You know honestly I dont know where I got it, I guess it wasnt from you though.

So are they going to call back 26 pilots then hire?

 

[Way2Broke]

In reference to usajet for sale every company is for sale for the right price. Usajet in no way shape or form is going under. They might be hiring in the next two months. They have a few passenger contracts that should be starting soon. To every one who wants to solve usajet's problems please post the problem with a SOLUTION so you can educate management.

Hire a President that has a solid track record in growing companies instead of downsizing them. That would secure the future of the company. A boat is only as good as it's Captain. You asked for a solution, there you have it. They actually have a pretty good group of middle management that with solid leadership could lead a very successful company into high profits, diversified fleet, and a bright future. Passenger contracts? Every Pax contract USA Jet has had in the past has been a very low profit margin, or even a loss. Ref San Juan, and Red Bull.

They also need to look at the big picture, and quit celebrating after a busy week and screaming it's over after one bad week.

If they are counting on pax contracts as their sole source of income I doubt it will work. They need a more reliable, fuel efficient airplane to pull something like that off. Like it or not, a DC-9 does not hold that many people than the larger, newer, cheaper to operate RJs. That market is saturated.